These Surfside condo owners survived a harrowing disaster. Now they're forced to battle big insurers

[Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin]

A rare carved head from the Solomon Islands believed to offer supernatural protection. A bronze statue from Greek mythology. A hand-knotted Indian carpet.

The trinkets and relics encapsulated Miller's memories of a life teaching in the South Pacific, Southeast Asia and Europe. He had placed each one methodically throughout his two-bedroom condo next to inherited family heirlooms and photos of his daughter.

All of it disappeared on June 24 when the Champlain Towers South condominium collapsed in Surfside, Florida, killing 98 people and crumbling everything to pieces.

Now Miller, like some other survivors whose homes were destroyed that day, is struggling to get an insurance payout to replace what was lost in one of the largest building disasters in U.S. history.

Some insurance companies have delayed payments or routed them to third parties. At least one – State Farm – has yet to decide if it will issue payments to Miller and possibly others.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/these-surfside-condo-owners-survived-a-harrowing-disaster-now-theyre-forced-to-battle-big-insurers/ar-AAMK3ya

[TreasonousBastard]

1. May have to go to court. Generally, losses due to rust, rot, corrosion or other such thing are...

not covered. With a condo, though, the owner has little control over common space or infrastructure maintenance, so may have a claim against managers. Unless, of course, the problems were shown to the owners and they decided to do nothing.

Very careful reading of the policy terms is needed.

[Captain Stern]

2. I'm not sure what you mean, here.

The owners in this case had all the control over common space and infrastructure. I think that's part of being an owner.

The 'managers' would have been their employees.

[TreasonousBastard]

4. They are the owners, but there is a property management firm contracted to do the work...

Somebody, probably the condo board, screwed up. I heard the owners put repairs off because they didn't want to pay.

If that's true, the insurers wouldn't have to pay.

[brooklynite]

3. I think they have a weak case...

As Condo owners, they're all co-owners of the building structure. If they chose not to undertake necessary repairs, the Insurance Company can likely deny the claim.